Adjustable flexible sports net system
And adjustable sports net system comprising a plurality of ground anchors (105), two standard assemblies (108), elastic guy line assemblies (107) connecting the ground anchors to the standards, and a net fabric (101) disposed between the two standard assemblies. The net fabric (101) is adjustable in length and height, independent of initial placement of the standard assemblies (108). The standard assemblies (108) may deflect substantially upon impact from a game object (503) but return to a nominal position because of the elastic spring elements (110) in the guy line assemblies (107). The energy from such impact is absorbed over a longer time period, and the peak forces are kept lower for use of cheap, light materials, for system that is lightweight, fast to set up by a single person, and cost effective to manufacture. A safety structure provides protection to the consumer from inadvertent pullout of each ground anchor (105).
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/634,427, filed Feb. 29, 2012 and U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/848,374, filed Jan. 2, 2013 each filed by the present inventors.
FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCHNot applicable
SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAMNot applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the InventionThis invention relates to portable sports net assemblies, and more specifically to a portable, horizontally and vertically adjustable assembly which uses flexibility in the design to dissipate energy from impact plus a safety mechanism to limit the potential harm of the stored energy to the user or bystanders, allowing for a light weight, cheap construction.
Sports nets are used in a variety of sports such as volleyball, tennis, badminton, soccer tennis, etc. In the interest of brevity, the invention shall be described as how it relates to the sport of soccer tennis, but the constructions and inventions described and claimed in this specification may be used in any such game which requires one or more nets or net substitutes such as a barrier or wall that marks a horizontal boundary above ground level.
Soccer tennis is a game played on a field created with two halves of a court with equal dimensions and a net separating the two halves similar to tennis or volleyball. The object of the game is to play a ball over the net and have it land in the opponent's court without them returning the ball into the first player or team's court. Typically a player or team will have one or more touches allowed on the ball with which to return the ball to the opponent's side; for example three touches may be allowed as in volleyball. Many variations of the game are played, including allowing the ball to bounce one or more times prior to declaring a point over (as in tennis), or no bounces allowed at all, such as in volleyball. One important aspect of the game is the rules may be altered to teach a specific skill. Allowing bounces will teach the ability to receive a ball off the ground with the body, whereas a rule set where bounces are banned teaches the player to receive the ball in the air. Soccer tennis is played without use of the hands, and is used to develop touch, meaning the ability to hit the ball with the correct direction and velocity, with various parts of the body other than the hands. As previously stated, sports involving hands also benefit from the inventions described, and the application of the inventions and sports net system described herein shall be understood to one skilled specifically in the art of those sports.
Soccer tennis is a game which can be played by 2 persons, or sometimes played 11 against 11, which would involve all players typically on a soccer team's roster. Soccer tennis can be played by young children, for example 8 or 9 years old, up to adults. Because of the greatly varying characteristics of the players, such as quantity, physical size, and skill level, it is important that the equipment used to play the game be adjustable in height and length. A field for use in a 1 vs. 1 game must be much smaller than a field for 11 vs. 11. Likewise the net height for an 8 year must be much lower in general than the net height for an adult. Even within a given age group, net adjustability changes the dynamics of the game such that a higher net typically creates a slower game and may be played without allowing the ball to touch the ground, like volleyball, whereas a lower net creates a much faster, direct, game as in tennis. A single net system which can be adjusted allows greater flexibility and utility in developing various skills of the players. Adjustability also makes the net useful for other sports than soccer tennis. For example, a typical soccer tennis net may be 4 ft high, but a net that could extend up to 8 ft could also be used to play volleyball. Not only is adjustability important, but speed and real time adjustability is also crucial. A coach may wish to have a warm-up game with the net in a lower position, and raise the height to transition the skill level to more of an aerial game as players warm up or improve in skill. Alternatively a large gathering of people of different ages, sizes, etc. and skill level may wish to play a tournament (for example a family reunion) and a net that is quickly and easily adjusted in height and/or length allows for quick transition between a junior bracket where a net would be in a lower position, and an adult bracket where the net would be in a higher position. Without this fast adjustability in length and height, and therefore the need to fully or partially take the net down each time, such a tournament becomes cumbersome, which limits the scope of usefulness and therefore the advantage of the system to the end user. Finally, the size, weight, and portability are essential characteristics of the sports net system. For use in a team setting, a coach will typically need to carry to the field and set up multiple net systems so having something lightweight, compact and fast to set up is crucial. If a net system is too cumbersome to carry around, then a coach will not take the time to incorporate the game into the session. Likewise if a net system is too heavy or unwieldy for a young player to carry on a bicycle for example, this again limits the utility of the system as the child needs someone to take them around to set up the game.
Many examples of prior art, in particular the Kwik Goal™, Bownet™ and U.S. Pat. No. 5,156,408 to Hall et al, do not provide any means for height or length adjustment, limiting the utility of such a system to a particular type and quantity of player as described above. Other patents U.S. Pat. No. 4,415,163 to Schoenig, U.S. Pat. No. 5,344,157 to McCord, U.S. Pat. No. 4,720,112 to Stettner et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,885,176 to Wong et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,611,539 to Watterson et al, U.S. Pat. No. 7,731,610 to Hun Im, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,326,109 to Robl, all discuss the desire for height adjustment with either telescoping members, discrete positions along the vertical length of a right and left standard for attaching the net, or a combination of both. Telescoping poles have the inherent disadvantage that they increase manufacturing costs and assembly complexity by requiring tubing of different sizing that must stay straight along the length that is to be in contact between the inner and outer member. With respect to telescoping systems, portability is a common desirable theme of much of the prior art, however a tube can easily get bent in transit, in the back of a car, or from a small child stepping on it while on the ground. A bent tube ruins the entire system because the tubes can no longer slide within each other. To resist such bending, tube dimensions must be increased and a heavier duty material used which adds cost and weight to the system, and still doesn't fully protect against bending. Indeed Stettner mentions the diameter of such tubing being 2″ compared to the ½″ PVC tube discussed in the preferred embodiment of this application. Kessler mentions the tolerance of such pipes to be between 0-0.015″ on the diameter, which is a tighter tolerance than most common plastic tubing extrusions, meaning a custom extrusion, which is more expensive to manufacture. Indeed, this tolerance must be maintained along the entire telescoping length which is quite difficult to achieve cheaply, even in metal. Kessler and others who discuss the need for low cost and portability recognize that plastic is a far cheaper option. However with a telescoping design, Kessler and others fail to realize that plastic warps in the sun and deforms over time, which will ruin the telescoping ability and lead to binding. Thus, the best chance a telescoping system has of being functional is to be made of metal which is heavier and more costly than a plastic alternative that doesn't telescope. Additionally, as described in McCord, Schoenig, Wong, and Watterson by example, telescoping standards are described that are under inward forces on the upper member of the standard from the net tension. This inward force causes a binding friction between the inner and outer members of the standard, and to some degree will bend the standards when the net is tensioned, making real time height adjustment in situ virtually impossible without releasing the tension in the net. The tension in the net must first be released by detaching the net, the standards adjusted, and then the tension re-applied by attaching the net again. Once the net is detached, the guy lines will pull the standard to the ground because there is no counterforce. To prevent this, a user must hold the standard in place while adjusting the height and while re-attaching the net. This makes adjustment a two person job, one to manage the standard and one to manage the net. Requiring two people is problematic in a setting where a coach is setting up a training session by themselves. Further, Wong, Kessler, Stettner, and Schoenig all describe telescoping systems with vertical height adjustment systems that require some degree of re-tensioning of two or more guy lines post-vertical adjustment to maintain tension in the system in addition to requiring additional bodies to adjust the height without the system collapsing. This is because the upper section of the standard, where the guy lines are attached, is moved downward, decreasing the length of the guy line. Because there is no elastic element in the guy line, the guy line becomes slack and net tension is lost. McCord describes a telescoping scheme where a collar slides around a standard of fixed height, the guy line is attached to the top of the standard, and therefore does not change its position vertically on height adjustment. However, McCord fails to realize that it is virtually impossible for the user to put the standards in perfectly parallel when applying tension, so inevitably the net will be tensioned for a given net height, when the net is adjusted in situ, the distance between the standards will change and the net tension will change, and in some cases decrease and lead to a drooping net. This problem would be alleviated by flexible standards which could deflect to provide the extra distance to make up for lack of parallelism, however this would mean the standards bend slightly, and this would not prevent McCord's sleeve to translate along the standard. Therefore, McCord's design is not able to guarantee net tension over a wide range of heights without readjusting guy lines or repositioning standards. Vertical telescoping height adjustment described in the prior art therefore is a cumbersome process compared to the inventions in this specification, which disclose methods of height adjustability without taking apart any components of the system. Additionally, telescoping systems have superfluous material in the system by virtue of requiring a minimal amount of overlap between the two tubes. A minimal section of overlap (in the extended position) is required on the inner member and the outer member, however if the two members are simply joined, and the height adjusted by other means, this extra overlap in material does not exist. Additionally, telescoping systems, by their nature are not optimized for the forces put on them, because a standard will have a given set of dimensions (wall thickness and diameter) for a given maximum force, and because the inner and outer members must be different sizes, the larger member will, by necessity, be over-designed (the smaller member must be designed to take the force, yet fit inside the larger member). Both this overlap and the non-optimal use of tube dimensions means the system will be heavier and more costly by material use alone than an optimized system that did not rely on telescoping members for height adjustment. Finally, most of telescoping systems described do not have a guard to prevent from inadvertently pulling one member out of the other during adjustment, which would delay setup time. Such a provision, which would be required of a practical telescoping system, would add to the complexity, cost, and number of adjustment operations to change the height of the system.
Systems such as the FootTennisSoccer™, Wong et al., Watterson et al., rely on discrete height adjustment positions, and are non-optimal as they require the net to be disconnected in at least two points, in most cases four corners of the net, moved, and then reconnected. In the case of Wong et al, changing height requires threading a strap through a slot, then threaded through a buckle, which can be difficult, frustrating, and time consuming depending on the stiffness of the strap. In the case of FootTennisSoccer™, two settings are available at 1 meter and 1.6 meters. An extra length is required to be attached on top of the base standards, and then the net re-attached. This is not practical if the setup is to be changed quickly in the middle of a training session because the tension must be released to remove the net, then the height extenders put on, then the net re-attached. This takes unnecessary time, and setup/adjustment time is a critical operating parameter for a coach who has limited time, and needs to quickly change the dynamics of the training session. In reality, coaches or players either will not adjust the initial height, or not use the system, both of which reduce or eliminate the potential utility of the system. Discrete vertical height positions also, by their nature add more complexity with attachment points, and mating elements that increase manufacturing part count, operations, and cost. At the same time discrete height adjustment systems also limit the amount of possible positions the net can have to the number of height adjustment spots. For FootTennisSoccer™, the two positions are almost double one another meaning there are a lot of possible heights that are missed. Because of the inherent limitations, increased manufacturing cost, and increased setup/adjustment time in telescoping and discrete position net height adjustment systems, a system in which the net is continuously and quickly adjusted in the vertical direction is big advantage to increasing the utility of the system and its incorporation into coaching sessions or events where large variance in users want to use the same field.
As discussed above, it is also an important aspect of a sports net system to be simply and quickly adjustable in length to accommodate a varying quantity of players. Prior art, such as the existing soccer tennis systems on the market (Kwik Goal™, Bownet™, FootTennisSoccer™), don't provide for length-wise adjustment, probably because most games are played with a fixed dimension according to the rules of the game. Bownet™ and Kwik Goal™ describe placing multiple nets together, however this requires multiple systems and more cost to the consumer. Further, if the desired length is actually 1.5× a Bownet™ or Kwik Goal™ net length, this is not achievable with their products. It is an added benefit of the system for all sports, volleyball, badminton, soccer tennis, etc. to be length adjustable to maximize the enjoyment of the game by preventing a situation where a single player has to run around a court that is too large, or conversely too many players need to cram into a court that is too small. Because of the nature of the operating environment of these systems, parks, backyards, etc. there may not be space for a full size court. Such a situation would render a product useless if it can't be adapted to fit the available space. Therefore a net that can adapt in length to the environment is beneficial and opens up the range of settings in which the sports net system can be used. Furthermore, it is always much easier to find one person with free time to play 1v1 than to find 6 people to play 3v3. However, without a system that is functional for games with varying quantities of players, a larger system, such as the FootTennisSoccer™ (7 m in length), will not be used to the full extent it should be unless a minimum number of players are brought together to play. U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,932 to Kessler in particular has no means of length adjustment so if the bases are not placed just right, the user will have to move heavy, ballasted bases to try and put tension on the net. This may not be possible in the case children using the system who don't have sufficient strength. Watterson et all, discusses a system for discrete length adjustment using a net with four attachment straps, one of which has a series of hooks. However this system keeps the length of the actual net portion a fixed length, meaning the sides are left open and ambiguous as to whether the ball or object has gone over or under the net. The wider the standards are placed, the more of the length without a portion of the net is present and the less effective the system becomes. Watterson's design also ends up with superfluous material hanging and the hooks may get tangled on the net and cause a mess in the packaging process, or float into the court on a windy day. Watterson's design also relies on heavy well secured standards to the ground. Because of the discrete length adjustments, it is necessary to move the distance between the standards when adjusting the net length, and this is not trivial given how securely they must be planted into the ground. U.S. Pat. No. 5,816,956 to Ellis et al shows a net that can be disconnected in a portion and allowed to droop down which again interferes with the look and function of the system, and would blow into the field of play on a windy day. Both Watterson and Ellis describe only discretely length adjustable systems. In a quick setup a player does not want to have to measure the length precisely, therefore, in the case of a system with separable standards like Watterson, there must either be a lot of length adjustment hooks (increased cost and complexity), or the standard must be able to bend to accommodate changes in length. Watterson's requirement and depiction of stiff telescoping poles relies on straightness, which is counter to this flexibility requirement. In the case of Ellis, the support apparatus is of a fixed net length so the support structure must be the maximum desired length that will ever be used. Ellis' design also requires a cross member to hold the tension in the net, which adds significant material and cost. Indeed for a tennis court as Ellis mentions, there is so much extra material the system is not really even portable anymore. Ellis describes the structure being made of aluminum tubing meaning a significant added cost in terms of material, connecting joints, etc. that is typically not required as the system will likely not be used at the maximum net length most of the time. Additionally the fixed net length of the support tubing structure in Ellis necessitates a larger playing area which is detrimental in a situation where a coach may want to have multiple nets set up side by side, but only be allocated a limited amount of space on a training field. It is therefore desirable a net system adjusts in length continuously to take up the minimal amount of surface area required for any given available field size, and eliminate the need for precise placement of the standards in the case of separable standards, enabling fast and simple setup by a single person, and ability to make fields of substantially different net lengths.
For systems that incorporate guy lines such as Kellams, Stettner, Robl, and McCord, guy lines are attached to the top of the standards. To achieve an acceptable angle with the ground, the guy lines must be anchored a greater distance from the base than if the guy lines were attached lower on the standard. Current designs using guy lines are configured this way because they must carry the net tension directly from the net at the top of the standard to the ground. However this creates a larger footprint for the guy lines and makes the guy lines more likely to be accidentally pulled out by someone tripping on them. This can pose a dangerous situation as the person may then fall on the exposed ground stake. It is therefore desirable that a net assembly not require guy line attachment at the top of the standard, but at a lower point as described in the disclosed invention.
Net games, like soccer tennis, are frequently played in parks and small fields between a group of friends or family getting together to have fun. Therefore it is important for the net to be very light and portable and require minimal setup time. Increased portability increases the utility of the system as it makes it less of a hassle for the players to transport and therefore more likely they will use the system. Specifically for soccer tennis, it is the object of the system that a pair of 8 year olds can take a system on their bicycle and set up at a local field to play. Furthermore, a coach or trainer with a roster of 24 players for example, may want to use 6+ systems during training sessions for 2v2 or 3v3 tournament play and therefore must be able to easily carry these systems without having to take multiple trips back to the car. Existing products such as the Kwik Goal™ (11 lbs), FootTennisSoccer™ (13 lbs) are heavier than they need to be due to construction design such as an added cross bar in the example of the Kwik Goal™, and too large of a net and metal side posts in the case of the FootTennisSoccer™. These systems are 2-3 times heavier than the system described herein and not really portable in quantities of 4 or more. Systems relying on ballast such as Kessler have bases that are required to cover a large surface area to provide a solid enough base, so while they may be light without the ballast, they are physically large and difficult to carry. The ballast material, typically water or sand, may also be difficult to source onsite once the system is setup. Systems such as Watterson, which rely on heavy plates that cover larger surface areas for stability, also contradict portability. Telescoping systems such as Schoenig require more material than is necessary to carry a given force as described above and also are prone to bending. If the telescoping system is to resist bending, it must be made of substantially higher gauge steel or other material which increases weight.
One crucial aspect of many net systems is that they inherently involve contact between the net and the player or the game object (like a volleyball). This contact puts a stress on the system which must be absorbed and transmitted to the ground without displacement of the equipment, which would require putting the equipment back into place to maintain the integrity of the field boundaries. Weights are commonly used to anchor a system to the ground. However, this contradicts the goal of compactness, portability, and low carrying weight. Designs such as Kessler et al. remove the weight from the system, but require the user to source the weight at the place where the system is to be setup, for example sand on a beach, which is not feasible in the case of a public park. This limits the utility of such designs primarily to beaches. Ellis and the Kwik Goal™ ignore the need to secure the system to the ground all together, most likely because they are designed to operate on hard surfaces like artificial turf which can't receive any sort of stakes or ground anchors. This is a big oversight however; these systems use a net that will absorb the entire impact of the ball, yet have nothing but the friction on the ground to secure it into place. In reality, the entire net system ends up tipping over or sliding on the surface of the grass which requires the players to reposition it after every net impact, slowing down the pace of the game. Other systems, such as Hall and Watterson et al. require implantable ground supports, or supports with bases with large surface areas that are staked into the ground. In the case of implantable ground supports this requires digging a hole, which is not practical when low setup time, net length adjustment, and portability are crucial requirements. With regard to a flanged support base as depicted in Watterson, to prevent the standard from tipping over, the diameter or outer dimension of such a flange needs to be significant to absorb the torque put on the standard if the ball hits the top of the standard, reducing portability. Hall mentions the material for the support structure to be plastic, but this will not provide sufficient weight to keep the support from moving. If only the standard is plastic, it risks breaking from high impact as the standard acts as a long lever arm for an impact at the top of the standard. In all systems prone to movement or loosening in the ground, the net will lose tension after impact with the player and/or ball, and repositioning will be required to restore tension to the net. Weighted or large diameter bases unnecessarily increase the physical size and weight of the system for transport. Therefore it's important that a system be designed to flexibly absorb this energy and transmit to the ground surface.
While the designs described above do not address the need to transmit forces to the ground, Schoenig et al., McCord, Stettner et al., Kellams, Robl, and Wong et al, FootTennisSoccer™, anchor their systems to the ground with stakes and guy lines with tensioning devices. A typical configuration is two guy lines coming from the top of a standard to two stakes on the ground, the same on the opposite side, and a net connecting the two standards. However, in all of these systems, there is no compliance built into the system. The guy lines are all tensioned and locked during setup, and therefore not able to change their length. This means the net has very little compliance. A force from the ball or a person running into the net is transmitted directly down to the stakes in the ground without any dissipation of this energy. A high enough force, or a small child running around the field who kicks the rope connected to the ground stake, means the stake comes dislodged and the entire net collapses and must be set up again. Additionally, after repeated impacts into either the net or the standard from the ball or player, the standard and stakes will tend to loosen in the ground. This reduces the tension in the system causing the net to droop, and requires the game to stop so the net can be re-tightened. The FootTennisSoccer™ system illustrates exactly this problem as the net will frequently absorb the full impact of the ball, not to mention the standards are prone themselves to impact from the ball. It only takes a few impacts for the standard to no longer remain substantially upright. Wong et al, offers a built in re-tensioning solution, but it is very difficult to manufacture because it requires welding or gluing inside of a long narrow tube. Further, Wong's design does not offer flexibility in the tensioning system so it will still result in net droop as the posts and stakes loosen over time in the ground. Kellams recognizes the deficiency of just using ropes and stakes to locate and keep tension on a sports net system by providing extra base support. However, Kellams' solution is to add more parts, cost and weight to the system. Kellams also fails to take into account impacts at the base support, parallel to ground, will cause the base support to slide out from under the net and the system will collapse. Furthermore, Kellams' design helps to spread the force to the ground, but the system is still rigid and therefore, impacts which pull the standards inward, i.e. a ball crashing into the middle of the net, transmit forces directly to the stakes, causing the stakes to loosen and eventually pull out. Robl's solution is similar to Kellams by providing a substantial base support of 6 square inches with a 6 inch spike. Not only is such a design dangerous in transportation (a small child riding a bike with a 6 inch spike for example), but it is unnecessarily large and costly when compared to the invention described herein. Intentional compliance in the system as described and claimed herein maintains net tension through impacts, and drastically reduces the chance of net loosening and stake pull out as there is far more physical movement allowed by all system components without exceeding the pullout force of the stakes. This reduced force on the stakes also means that the stakes can be shorter which makes them easier to put in, and less dangerous/more convenient to carry around and package up (no tangling). Indeed, a system built according the this specification was battered with a ball and left erect for over one week with no appreciable loss in net tension. Some patents referenced herein such as Schoenig et al, rely on stakes, and acknowledge the need for a hammer to put the stakes in the ground. This again adds setup hassle and weight to the system. A net system with built in compliance therefore allows for a smoother operation of the game, with fewer instances of re-tensioning required, more flexibility in net length setup, and a better overall user experience.
In an elastic system, most of the energy from impacts goes into deforming the elements of the system, whereas in an non-elastic system the energy is transmitted to the anchoring elements through high peak forces which will cause loosening or pullout from the ground. This allows for shorter ground spikes, and lighter weight materials because of the lower peak forces each member must carry. Indeed, prototype nets functioned well with 3.5″ ground spikes whereas a typical spike for a volleyball net would be 4-5″. A shorter stake is in general safer to the consumer, and lighter weight materials are cheaper to fabricate and lighter to carry around. While it is a great benefit that an elastic system will reduce peak forces on the ground anchors, a flexible, elastic system will store energy when a force is put on the net or standards. A mechanism therefore is required to dissipate this energy in a safe manner without the chance of injury to a player or bystander. All references herein, lack any type of safety mechanism against stake or standard pullout, primarily because they do not incorporate elastic members, and therefore are incapable of storing energy. In an elastic system, as described and claimed herein, the energy stored in the elastic members can be transmitted to a ground anchor/stake and, should the ground anchor/stake release, force it to fly upwards with an appreciable velocity, posing a safety risk. A further aspect of the safety mechanism should be that it absorbs energy without limiting the stretch or bending of the elastic member(s). For example, a rope overlapping and secured to either end of a shorter section of bungee cord is used in sailing applications to limit the amount of possible stretch in the bungee cord. This is perfectly suitable for sailing applications where the purpose is mainly to prevent a catastrophic failure of the bungee cord from a gust of wind on the sail. This would not work in a flexible sports net system however. Such a safety mechanism limits the stretch, so a user can theoretically stretch/bend the elastic member to the maximum amount during initial setup, and therefore any further impacts on the system would not be absorbed by further compliance (because the elastic limit was reached during setup), and these forces would be transmitted directly to the stakes, causing loosening and loss of net tension. The compliance of the system would have effectively been bypassed. Furthermore, for elastic members that change properties over time (such as bungee cords), it is also detrimental to limit the amount of stretch with the safety mechanism, since over time, more stretch may be required to produce the same compliance force and net tension. Therefore, with a elastic system, a safety mechanism which dissipates the stored energy from the elastic member(s) without limiting the amount of compliance that can be achieved should be incorporated as described herein.
Finally, it will be noted that systems which use a traditional net structure may over complicate what is actually required to fulfill the object of the game. A net that is the traditional size of a volley ball, or soccer tennis net as described in the referenced patents, or sold with the Kwik Goal™ or FootTennisSoccer™, adds weight to the system by virtue of the amount of material. Such a net also increases the chance of entanglement with other parts of the system in the netting during packaging, increasing frustration on setup/teardown. In the case of soccer tennis, or tennis systems, the net also blocks the ball from traveling through to the other side which requires a player to walk up to the net and retrieve the ball. This slows down any game played, and is typically not required to tell if the ball went over or under the net. A net which is much shorter in height, or doesn't go all the way to the ground, accomplishes the goal of allowing players to determine if a shot went over or under, yet allows the ball to travel through to the other player with the energy it already has and prevents a player from having to retrieve the ball. This is or particular relevance in relation to the Kwik Goal™ and FootTennisSoccer™ systems.
Objects and AdvantagesAccordingly, besides the objects and advantages of elastic adjustable sports net system described in this specification, several objects and advantages of the present invention are:
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- a) to provide a sports net system that accommodates varying height settings along a continuous vertical adjustment path without the net to detach the net or re-tension or re-tighten any components;
- b) to provide a sports net system that accommodates varying length settings along a continuous length-wise adjustment path;
- c) to allow the adjustments described in a) and b) to be made by a single person and in real time without the need for disassembly of parts of the system to minimize time required to make the adjustment;
- d) to provide a sports net system that is light in weight;
- e) to provide a sports net assembly that is easily collapsible, portable, and compact;
- f) to provide a sports net assembly that is cheap and simple to manufacture;
- g) to provide a sports net assembly that is flexible and resilient to absorb impact from an object, ball or player for example, and deflect sufficiently to transmit this impulse of energy to the ground without permanent movement or loosening or ground attachment points, and then return to a nominal position without the need for readjustment by a user;
- h) to provide a sports net assembly that absorbs the energy stored in its elastic member(s) without posing a safety risk to the player(s) or bystander(s);
- i) to provide a sports net assembly that has easily interchangeable nets for embroidering of a logo;
- j) to provide a system where a single person may independently place the standards into a penetrable surface at any reasonably length, and then string a net between them so setup does not take multiple players, and the length does not require precise location or preassembly;
- k) to provide a sports net system whose net tension does not loosen under impacts to the system;
- l) to provide a sports net system that is adjustable to take up the minimum required footprint for a given field size while maintaining resiliency, flexibility, portability, and adjustability;
- m) to provide elements a)-l) in a single system that is simple and easy and safe to transport, durable, and fast to setup.
Still further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the ensuing description and drawings.
SUMMARYIn accordance with the present invention, an adjustable sports net assembly comprises two standards, vertical guides running a portion of the length of each standard, a net connected to and disposed between each of these guides with cord stops to secure the vertical position of the net for continuous vertical adjustment of the net. The net is adjustable in length via doubling back on itself using strips of hook and loop fastener, to allow for continuous adjustment in net length of the assembly. Each standard is connected to the ground via a guy line incorporating a spring element two guy line elements connected each to a ground stake. The spring elements absorbs impact of an object on the net, allowing each standard to deflect about its base in any direction, yet return to a nominal position once the full impact has been absorbed and transmitted to the ground stakes. A safety system is attached to each stabilization assembly to limit the height each stake could reach should it inadvertently pull out of the ground.
A preferred embodiment of an adjustable elastic sports net system 100 is shown in
Two movable cord stops 111 are attached onto each height adjustment guide 106. The movable cord stops 111 for example are spring loaded clamps, such as those used to synch and hold a duffle bag closed. Any mechanism which has a closed position for gripping the height adjustment guide 106 preventing vertical travel along the height adjustment guide, and an open position for movement along the height adjustment guide may be used. The net fabric 101 is disposed between the two standard assemblies 108, and located on the height adjustment guide 106, held in place vertically between the two movable cord stops 111. The net fabric 101 is attached by wrapping a first overlap flap 112 around one of the height adjustment guides 106. A length adjustment overlap flap 114 is wrapped around the other height adjustment guide 106. In the preferred embodiment the first overlap 112 and length adjustment overlap flap 114 are secured by doubling back attachment means in the form of strips of paired of hook and loop fasteners 102 (e.g. Velcro), so that the net fabric 101 attaches to itself around each of the height adjustment guides 106. Continuous strips of paired hook and loop fasteners 102 are preferred, but any suitable means of attachment such as zippers, magnets, snaps, buttons, grommets and hooks may be used. Other net length adjustment designs are discussed later. The first overlap flap 112 can alternatively be a sewn loop so that it is not separable from the height adjustment guide 106, and would require placing around its respective height adjustment guide prior to assembly with the upper tube 120.
Each standard assembly 108 comprises a base plate 104 and at least one ground spike 103. The base plate 104 may be any suitable shape, for example a 4.5″ diameter circle, that covers enough surface area to prevent the lower tube 121 from moving extensively and loosening in the ground too much during play. Diameters down to 2″ have been tested and deemed usable. The base plate 104 is connected to the lower tube 121 by suitable means including but not limited to glue, threads, set screws, friction fit, slotted pins, welding, etc. This connection may be separable or permanent. Each ground spike 103 is connected to the base plate 104 via suitable permanent or separable means including but not limited to glue, threads, welding, bolt with a nut etc. Each ground spike 103 may be for example, a ¼-20 by 2″ threaded bolt, either threaded into the base plate 104 or fixed with a nut (not shown) on the opposite side of the base plate. Alternatively the lower tube 121, base plate 104, and ground spike 103, or some combination thereof, may be made as one piece in an injection molding process.
In one form, a stabilization assembly 107 is made of at least one guy line 109 connected in line with at least one spring element 110, means of connecting a first end of the stabilization assembly 107 to a first object, such as an anchor 105, means of connecting a second end of the assembly to a second object such as the standard assembly 108, and a means for incorporating with an optional safety mechanism as characterized below. Such connection means to the first object and connection means to the second object may be made with a knot, crimp, glue, friction grip, looped end, hook or otherwise described elsewhere in this specification as related to connecting items to the anchor 105 or the standard assembly 108. Further, if used, the optional safety system is fixed relative to one end of the stabilization assembly 107, but allows the components of the stabilization assembly to translate relative to the safety system as described below. In its most basic form, the stabilization assembly 107 may omit the guy line 109, and consist therefore of only a spring element 110 and the connection means mentioned as shown in
Just to reiterate, the dimensions discussed in this preferred embodiment are for a system specifically designed and optimized for the game of soccer tennis. For other games, or a multipurpose net that functions for various types of net games (for example a single net for volleyball, tennis, badminton, etc.) the dimensions of the components discussed above may be increased, decreased, thickened, thinned, lengthened, shortened, as necessary without taking away from the invention of a sports net assembly that allows for continuous vertical and horizontal adjustment, with flexibility to absorb impact without moving position relative to a fixed place on a court or field. Similarly members which are described as stiff, may be flexible, and vice versa, if the goals of the inventions are accomplished. Further, connection points described as fixed may be removable, and vice-versa, without departing from the spirit of the invention described herein.
Preferred Embodiment OperationThe setup of the adjustable and elastic sports net system 100 discussed above may be achieved by a single person or by multiple people. A single person can assemble the adjustable and elastic sports net system 100 because there is no preassembly of the net fabric 101 and standard assemblies 108, which would otherwise require multiple people to lift such an assembly and plant into the penetrable ground surface simultaneously; an operation by its nature not possible with a single person.
First the contents of the carrying bag 403 are removed. The components for the standard assemblies 108 are then separated. The net fabric 101 may be loose or attached around one of the height adjustment guides 106. Each base plate 104 is preferably left connected to its respective lower tube 121 and the ground spikes 103 at all times. In an alternate embodiment these pieces may be assembled and disassembled for each use and more compact storage. The base plate 104 is pressed into the penetrable ground surface, where the ground spikes 103 hold the lower tube 121 approximately perpendicular to the ground surface. The upper tube 120 and coupling 122, which hold the stabilization assembly 107 are attached to the top of the lower tube 121, forming a single standard assembly. The stabilization assembly 107 is then stretched in the direction away from the field of play, at an anchor angle 119 of approximately 30-45 degrees on either side of the halfway court line 125 as shown in
The desired distance between the two standard assemblies 108 is measured or estimated according the needs of the players and the game for that session and the same procedure is repeated to erect a second standard assembly 108. As would be obvious to a player, the two standards are oriented such that they line up along the half court line 125 with the axis of each upper tube 120, height adjustment guides 106, and net fabric 101 all being substantially co-planar.
At this point, the field consists of two standards, both of which have pivoted around the ground spikes 103, slightly leaning away from one another, outward from a line perpendicular to the penetrable surface. This is because each standard assembly 108 is being pulled by the spring elements 110 which are in the contracted state until the two standard assemblies 108 are connected with the net fabric 101. If it was not already connected to one of the height adjustment guides 106, the net 101 will now be connected to one height adjustment guide with a first overlap flap 112 as described below. The movable cord stops 111 are separated to a width greater than the width of the net fabric 101 and then collapsed to hold the net in position on the height adjustment guide 106. The net fabric 101 is looped around the height adjustment guide 106 and the overlap flap 112 is doubled back on itself and one side (preferable the hook side) of paired hook and loop fastener 102 is attached to a mating patch of pair of the hook and loop fastener to secure one side of the net around the height adjustment guide 106. As mentioned above, the height adjustment guide 106 may be other than a rope with spring loaded cord stops. For example, a threaded rod could be used with nuts and washers on either side of the net 101 to control the height. The invention shall not be limited specifically to the constructions described herein.
On the other standard assembly 108, the two movable cord stops 111 are similarly separated to a width greater than the width of the net fabric 101. The net fabric 101 is then pulled across the length of the field along the half court line 125 and the length adjustment overlap flap 114 is looped around the other height adjustment guide 106, between the two movable cord stops 111. The length adjustment overlap flap 114 is doubled back on the net fabric 101, and the net pulled taught until the standard assemblies 108 are standing upright axially along a line substantially perpendicular to the penetrable surface. The initial net tension force in the net fabric 101 may be increased if desired by pulling the standard assemblies 108 slightly inward further, causing them to bow as shown in exaggerated fashion in
After setup, if needed, minor adjustments may be made if alignment is not exactly correct because the base plates 104 may be easily picked up off the penetrable surface past the height of the ground spikes 103 for repositioning. The nature and flexibility of the system and ability to keep tension without requiring precise placement of any of the components is a big benefit over prior art. The nets with rope guy lines described in prior art cannot be lifted off the surface for example without also pulling up the stakes as well. Additionally, the setup may be easily created by a single person, which is not possible with many of the prior art systems that require the net and standards to be assembled prior to lifting the assembly and placing perpendicular to the playing surface, which takes two people at a minimum.
The independent nature of the height adjustment design on each standard assembly 108 allows for a horizontal net fabric 101 regardless of levelness of the penetrable surface. Furthermore, during play, the dynamics of the game may be very quickly changed as the net height is very easily movable up and down on each side by sliding the position of the movable cord stops 111. A coach wishing to emphasize aerial play may move the net fabric 101 to a higher position in a matter of seconds. Or, if emphasizing a more direct and faster play, the coach may place the net fabric 101 at a lower position in a matter of seconds. Additionally, if on a team there are players of varying skill levels, the net 101 may be placed lower for some and higher for others. If the coach sees the game is two easy or too hard, he can again adjust the height within seconds to change the dynamics of the game. Finally, a net configuration may also be achieved where one side is higher than the other, which is useful in a fitness drill where players must jump over the net fabric 101 that is changing in height along the length of the court. Likewise, changing the length involves simply, removing adjustable overlap flap 114, and repositioning one of the standard assemblies 108, and then reconnecting the net fabric 101 at a different length.
The entire assembly can be considered a cantilevered system with one end of the standard assembly 108 fixed to the ground through the base plate 104 and ground spikes 103, and the other end free to displace. The ground spike 103 resist shear forces and therefore prevent slipping of the base plate 104 and constrain the standard assembly 108 in place on the ground. The ground spikes 103 alone only provide a small resistance to rotation of the standard assembly 108 with respect to the ground. Thus, for the purpose of an approximate structural analysis, the base can be considered simply supported, or pinned. The standard assembly 108 resists rotation by a balance of forces applied to the standard assembly 108, which include a tensile force FN (not shown because it is into the page) applied to the standard assembly 108 by the net fabric 101, the tensile forces FT1 605 and FT2 606 applied to the standard assembly 108 by the spring element 110, the shear FS 600, and vertical ground reaction force FG 604 applied to the ground spikes 103 and base plate 104.
An effective sports net system is one that maintains it shape and position, and if displaced, for example as shown in
A unique feature of this system is it robustness and resilience compared to a rigid or stiff system as described in the prior art; that is, 1) its ability to reduce peak forces internal to the system from incidental impact or contact, 2) its ability to absorb energy from incidental impact or contact, and 3) and its ability to rebound to its original unperturbed position after incidental impact or player contact. An optimally designed sports net system will take into account the force versus displacement properties of the various elastic elements in the system in relation to the overall size and mass of the net system. While all materials deform and exhibit some elastic recovery, in describing the restoring capacity of this system, only the spring elements 110, upper tubes 120, and lower tubes 121 are considered to absorb energy and store it as strain energy. Proper selection of stiffness and elastic properties of the spring element 110, upper tube 120, and lower tube 121 facilitate routine net height adjustment and improve system response to incidental ball impact or player contact as shown in
The stiffness of the spring element 110 is also important. If the spring element 110 stiffness is too low for the size and mass of the sport net, then the system will be sluggish, deform excessively on impact, and will not have a sharply-defined restored position after game object 503 impact or player contact. Conversely, if the spring element 110 stiffness is too high for the size and mass of the sport net system, then the system will approximate the behavior of a rigid net system such as described in the prior art. On game object 503 or player impact, higher forces will be transmitted to the anchors 105, causing pullout or necessitating better anchorage.
In addition, a robust and resilient system must also have enough combined spring element 110 and standard assembly 108 elastic deformation to account for—without significant change in dynamic response characteristics—small non-recoverable changes in length from anchor 105 loosening and/or non-recoverable stretch of the net fabric 101 or guy line 109 etc. A stiff, non-elastic, system as described in the prior art, is not capable of fully absorbing impacts, and thus susceptible to loosening of the anchors and loss of tension in the net after repeated impact. It was found in testing that for a 4 ft high system using 0.5″ schedule 80 PVC pipe for the upper tube 120 and lower tube 121, and 8 mm bungee cord for the spring element 110 created an optimal set of response characteristics: deflections at the top of the standard assembly up to 2+ feet, consistent return to nominal vertical position, and 3.5″ long anchors 105. It shall be noted and understood that these materials and size shall in no way limit the scope of this invention and that scaling would likely be needed for taller or wider net systems.
Finally, it is important to note that at all times, the tension forces FT1 605 and FT2 606 have a vertical downward facing component, which pull the upper tube 120 and coupling 122 down on top of the lower tube 121 against the penetrable surface with a force vertical force FG 604 (shown as a ground reaction force on the standard assembly). This is important because the compression prevents the upper tube 120 from being knocked off the top of the lower tube 120 from impact of the game object 503. As the force associated with velocity vector VB2 602 from the game object increases, the corresponding tension force also increases and pulls the two tubes even tighter together, increasing FG 604. It shall be noted that although not illustrated, if additional extension tubes 200 and extension couplings 201 are added, as long as guy line assemblies 107 are attached above the lower tube 121 the compression of the standard assembly 108 under impact is preserved.
The safety structure provided consists of safety tubes 115, safety tube connector 116, and height limiting member 117. If one of the anchors 105 releases from the ground, the stretched spring element 110 will recoil and pull the guy line 109 into the safety tube 115 at a high velocity, pulling the anchor with it. The safety tube 115, which is a stiff material, will act as a stop and block the anchor from moving further vertically. The anchor 105 will crash into the tip of the safety tube, ricochet, and fall to the ground harmlessly. In most cases the safety tube 115 alone is sufficient to dissipate the energy from a flying anchor 105 and the height limiting member 117 can be omitted, however, due to the elastic and flexible nature of the system and safety tube connector 116, it may be possible for the safety tube 115 to pivot about its connection to the safety tube connector, and send the anchor 105 flying higher vertically. The height limiting member 117 is non-elastic and connects the end of the safety tube 115 to the base 104, such that the amount of vertical pivot is minimal. As the safety tube 115 attempts to pivot upward about the connection point with the safety tube connector 116, the height limiting member 117 is pulled taught, putting the safety tube in compression. But since the safety tube 115 is a stiff material, it jams into the safety tube connector 116 and stops its movement. Thus, the height the anchor can achieve due to rebound and pivot of the safety tube 115 about its connection to the safety tube connector 116 is greatly minimized.
An added benefit of the design, which was discovered in testing, is that the when an anchor 105 releases from the penetrable surface, the standard assembly 108 immediately begins to fall down, pulling the flying anchor down with it. This is particularly beneficial in a simplified system that doesn't include a height limiting member 117 as discussed later. A standard assembly 108 that holds firmly into the penetrable surface will flex under stress, then when the anchor 105 releases, will act as a catapulting arm for the anchor, and will be quite dangerous if it doesn't incorporate some form of additional hardware for protection. Much of the prior art relies upon a deep and firm junction with the penetrable surface because the systems are non-elastic and therefore must transmit all forces through the standard assembly's 108 connection with the penetrable ground surface without falling down or loosening too much.
For packaging, as shown in
The operation of the system is generally the same, however the safety mechanism is different. During setup, the spring element 110 is stretched away from the base 104 until the safety stake connector 803 is pulled taught. The anchor 105 is then placed in the ground, and its corresponding safety stake 802 is similarly pressed into the ground. The geometry of placement is similar to that of the preferred embodiment. When the anchor 105 releases from the ground, the maximum height it will achieve will be limited by the distance between itself and the corresponding safety anchor 802. Upon release, the spring element 110 will recoil and pull the anchor 105 upward along the axis of the guy line 109 until the section of safety stake connecting member 803 between the safety stake 802 and released anchor 105 is pulled taught, which translates further load to the safety stake 802. However, by the time this section is pulled taught, most of the energy will have been absorbed and the further forces on the safety stake 802 will not be sufficient to pull it from the ground. In testing this distance was estimated to ideally be about 10″, leading to a maximum vertical height of the anchor 105 of about 10″ plus potentially the length of the anchor. The length of the short safety member 116 just must be long enough to allow the spring element 110 to contract and dissipate its store energy before too much force is transferred to the safety anchor 117, yet short enough to provide minimal vertical travel.
Alternate Embodiment—#2The operation of the standard assembly 800 is substantially similar to that of
The operation of the standard assembly 900 is substantially similar to that of
The operation of the standard assembly 1000 is substantially similar to the preferred embodiment. Where optional spring element 1003 is used, the upper tube 120, upper spring tube 1005 and lower spring tube 1004 may be made of inflexible material, such as metal, and the system may still retain the beneficial flexibility and elasticity of the preferred embodiment made of PVC. The optional spring element 1003 may be placed at any location along the length, but is more functional lower to the base plate 104 because impacts with the standard assembly with spring post 1000 will mostly occur above the optional spring element 1003, therefore allowing the spring element to flex and aid in deflection, reducing the force transmitted to the ground spikes 103.
It shall further be noted that any positional combination for guy line and spring elements, or multiple spring elements in series or parallel, shall be considered under the scope of this specification and claims. Further, it shall be noted that while the discussion of guy line material and spring elements is typically referred to as a rope, cable, or bungee material in this specification, solid members such as tubes or rods will also suffice in the case of guy lines and air cylinders or axial or torsion springs shall suffice in the case of spring elements.
Alternate Embodiment—#5The operation of this alternate embodiment is substantially the same as the preferred embodiment, but the part count and cost are reduced. However, the safety protections are no longer present, but as mentioned, with proper use, the system is designed to absorb all reasonable impacts without pull out of the anchor 105. It shall further be noted that other designs which incorporate additional components for the added benefit of safety, these added components may be eliminated to reduce the cost and complexity further, all the while relying on the user to properly set up and use the adjustable sports net system.
Alternate Embodiment—#6FIG. 11A,B show an alternate embodiment of a safety system to protect from the anchor 105 flying out based around standard assembly with spring post 1000 depicted in
The operation of this alternate embodiment is slightly different than that of
The safety mechanism operates as follows. When the anchor 105 pulls out of the ground, the anchor will retract rapidly until the contracted length of the end terminating spring element 1203 is reached. The maximum height 1202 the anchor 105 is allowed to reach is the contracted length of the end terminating spring element 1203 plus the length of the anchor 105 above the end of the rigid guy line 1201. This height is shown via the alternate pull-out position 1205 in
Alternatively, the position of the end terminating spring element 1203 and the rigid guy line 1201 may be switched so that the rigid guy line is attached to, or part of the anchor 105, and the end terminating spring element is attached to the standard assembly 108 of
The operation of this alternate embodiment is very similar to the preferred embodiment. If the anchor 105 is dislodged from the ground, the travel is limited to the length of the stiff tube short anchor connector 1303 plus the length of the anchor 105. In the case of a loose connection between the lower tube 121 and the rigid lower safety member 1301, some slight vertical movement may occur from the momentum of the anchor 105, but such displacement will be minimal as the mass of the anchor is insignificant.
Alternate Embodiment—#9In operation, it follows that the maximum weighted anchor height 1405 of the weighted anchor 1404 is limited by the size of the weighted anchor. As the weight anchor 1405 pulls out of the ground, the lower spring element 1001 contracts and pulls the weighted anchor diagonally upwards along the axis of the lower spring element. The weighted anchor 1404 goes from an initial position 1401 to a maximum height position 1402 with the corresponding lower spring element 1002 fully contracted and the energy transferred to potential energy of the height of the weighted anchor 1404, and finally to a resting position 1403. The weighted anchor 1404 is sized to minimize the weight while maintaining a maximal weighted anchor height 1405 that is safe.
Alternate Embodiment—#10FIG. 15A,B show an alternate safety mechanism for the adjustable sports net in replacement of the safety mechanisms described elsewhere in this application. Two protecting hemispheres 1501 are attached to each half of a spring biased hinge 1502 via suitable means such as screws, welding, gluing, etc. Each protecting hemisphere should be soft and deformable such as a rubber shell like a tennis ball. The spring biased hinge 1502 in turn is attached to the anchor 105 via suitable means such as screwing, gluing, etc, and also to the guy line 109 (or equivalent) at guy line attachment point 1500. The spring biased hinge 1502 may also be incorporated in the protecting hemispheres via molding, and thus, an extra part eliminated. The spring biased hinge 1502 is biased to force the two protecting hemispheres together to encompass the anchor 105. Termination methods for guy lines or their equivalents have been previously discussed and any suitable method, separable or permanent, may be used. Use of this safety mechanism eliminates the need for other safety provisions discussed in this application and may simplify construction and costs. Other hinge mechanisms such as a spring loaded door hinge may be applied to accomplish this same concept.
The operation of this alternate embodiment is similar to those discussed above, however the height the anchor 105 can reach upon pull out is limited only by the length of the attaching members, vertically oriented, which can be quite high. To protect the players, the protecting hemispheres 1501 close over the anchor 105 on pull-out to a closed position 1504, forming a softer barrier which cannot injure a person. The protecting hemispheres 1501 are opened by the user to an open position 1503 when pressing the anchor 105 into the ground. As the anchor 105 begins to dislodge, the spring biased hinge 1502 of the protecting hemispheres 1501 begin to close around the anchor, eventually enclosing it entirely before it can injury a person.
Alternate Embodiment—#11The safety mechanism operates in a few distinct ways. First, the loose safety weight 1601 reduces the pullout angle 1602 by turning the tension force on the anchor 105 to more of a horizontal force than a vertical force. This transition is significant as the anchor 105 is much stronger in resisting horizontal forces than vertical forces regarding pull out. Second, the anchor 105 must pass through the loose safety weight 1601, which is impossible if the guide loop 1604 or connection means is sized or configured properly to prevent this action. Thus the anchor 105 will rapidly dislodge, travel substantially horizontally as the lower spring element 1002 contracts, and stop when it impacts the loose safety weight 1601. In this manner, the maximum pull out height of the anchor 105 is kept to virtually at the level of the ground because of the trajectory path along the reduced pull out angle 1602. The downside is the need to carry more weight with the system, though this may not be a burden if weights are carried already for other purposes as can be common with a sports team.
Alternate Embodiment—#12The net system described in
The net system described in
To operate, the standards are independently placed at a desired distance relative to one another. The adjustable net receptacle 1721 and coiled spring net holder 1723 are adjusted to the desired height and locked into place. The net strapping 1725 is then pulled out of the coiled spring net holder 1723 and the net end plug 1720 placed and secured in the net end receptacle slot 1722. The height may further be adjusted as this point due to the flexible nature of the net strapping 1725 and the coiled spring 1724. The tension in the net strapping 1725 is determined by the strength of the coiled spring 1724, and it is desirable the tension of the coiled spring 1724 be strong enough to hold the two standard assemblies together and perpendicular to the playing surface against the outward force from spring elements 110 (not shown in this figure).
FIG. 18A,B show an alternate height adjustment design in a continuous loop height adjustment scheme. An upper tube 120 is provided with an upper ring 1803 attached at the top of the height adjustment range and lower ring 1804 attached near the bottom of the height adjustment range. A height adjustment cord 1801 is looped around the upper ring 1803 and down around the lower ring 1804. In between the upper ring 1803 and lower ring 1804, the net fabric 101 is connected to the height adjustment cord 1801 at cord connection points 1802. A tensioner 1805 is placed into a section of the height adjustment cord 1801, the position being such that the net fabric 101 has full vertical adjustment without the tensioner interfering with the upper ring 1803 or lower ring 1808. The tensioner 1805 may be a turnbuckle or other mechanism for adjusting the tension in a cable or rope. To operate, the two standards are independently placed on either side of a court at a desired distance. The net fabric 101 may be connected to the height adjustment cord 1801 as described in the preferred embodiment or the net fabric is connected to each height adjustment cord 1801 at or between connection points 1802. Such connection could be a hook through a grommet, a button, or other known means. Alternatively the net fabric 101 may be fixed or sewn onto one of the height adjustment ropes 1801 and attachable at the other height adjustment rope, with length adjustment via other means discussed in this specification. Once connected, the net fabric 101 is moved to the desired vertical position and the tensioner 1805 is tightened, pulling the height adjustment ropes 1801 tight against the upper ring 1803 and lower ring 1804. The sharp angle turned by the height adjustment rope 1801 around the upper ring 1803 and lower ring 1804 causes significant enough friction that the net 1800 does not move vertically under impact. The tensioner 1805 may be further loosened to allow changing the position of the net fabric 101.
When the anchor 105 pulls out of the ground, the guy line 109 retracts into the fabric safety sleeve 1900 until the anchor runs into the end of the stiffening rod 1901. The momentum carries the stiffening rod 1901 back toward the upper tube 120 where it is prevented from moving further due to being sewn into the fabric safety sleeve 1900. Because the fabric safety sleeve 1900 is flexible, the stiffening rod 1901 may begin to pivot with its corresponding section of fabric safety sleeve about the connection of the fabric safety sleeve and the coupling 122, rotating the anchor upward. The safety webbing 1902 is added to limit to amount of travel of the end of the fabric safety sleeve 1900 similar to the height limiting member 117 in
To operate, the tri spring collar post 2200, base plate 104, and ground spikes 103 are pressed into the ground. The anchors 105 are then pressed into the ground at an equal distance from the tri spring collar post 2200 at the degree spacing and orientation mentioned above. Although not shown, any of the safety mechanisms for preventing inadvertent pull out of the anchors 105 may be incorporated and/or modified to fit the three spring system shown. At this stage the tri spring elements are all loose and the tri spring collar 2201 is in the slack position 2206 with tri spring collar plunger 2203 in contracted position, but pressing against the tri spring collar post 2200 because of the spring bias. The sliding tri spring collar 2201 is moved from the slack position 2206 to an upper position vertically until the tri spring collar plunger 2202 aligns with the upper adjustment hole 2203 and is extended into the upper adjustment hole, holding the tri spring collar in the taught position 2205. This sets the standard assembly vertically and self-aligning, contrary to previously discussed designs where the tension in the guy lines biases the standard assembly outward toward the anchors 105. This design may be advantageous in a design such as shown in
To reiterate, none of the designs described are mutually exclusive or inclusive and many if not all of the height adjustment, length adjustment, and system flexibility, and safety concepts may be intermingled to create a fully functioning sports net system in the spirit of the inventions disclosed herein. One skilled in the art will recognized any minor modifications that would be needed for such an intermingling and such modifications shall be considered within the scope of this specification and claims. Further, it shall be recognized that many of the components described may be combined into a single object via different manufacturing processes such as welding, injection molding, casting, etc. While the applicant discusses some of these options briefly in the application, it shall be recognized any and all combinations of the components discussed herein shall be considered within the scope of this application and covered by the claims written. Similarly, it shall be recognized that many components in the system and their connection points, or connection means, may also be interchanged or rearranged to achieve the same effect as the disclosed configurations. Similarly, where components are discussed as being flexible and/or tubular, such components may also be solid if this accomplishes the same function as described in this specification. While the applicant discusses and illustrates several of these configurations, this application and claims shall not be limited solely to the different configurations discussed and other derivations shall be considered understood.
The reader will see that the adjustable sports net system of this invention is compact, portable, and easy to assemble by one person. The net may be used for many sports, not just soccer tennis, but badminton, tennis, volleyball, etc for example. Further the reader will recognize that the system has significant advantages over prior by broadening the utility of the system for different uses and inclusion in training schedules where setup time and adjustment time are crucial factors to whether a piece of equipment is used or not. Further still the reader shall recognize that the above is made possible because of the unique inventions described and combined to create a system that is continuously adjustable in length and height, and uses designed in flexibility to absorb impact, reducing forces on the system, and therefore component size and material requirements, all while maintaining tension in the system in manner that is safe to the consumer. Further still the reader shall recognize that the inventions described herein are useful in other areas than sports nets, for example building compliance into a tent stake system to avoid a person tripping over a tent stake rope and pull the stake out, leading to collapse of the tent. A elastic stake attachment would alleviate this problem. Another example where an elastic element would be useful is in tying trees and plants which are typically tied to stakes in the ground. This restricts their ability to grow as it prevents them from swaying in the wind which would normally stress the branches and trunk, which promotes growth. Instead of a stake, if one or more elastically deformable guy lines with a safety mechanism were used to secure the tree upright, the tree would be allowed to sway in the wind, deforming the guy lines, but not pulling them out of the ground. A safety mechanism in this case would be important to protect the gardener from inadvertent stake pullout, for example on a really windy day where stake pullout force could potentially be exceeded. The reader shall also recognize that height adjustment markings may be added to various components to create a height setting guide to ensure levelness of the game net.
Although the description above contains many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments of this invention. Thus the scope of this invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.
Claims
1. A stabilization system for stabilizing an object in a nominal position relative to a surface, said stabilization system comprising:
- a) at least one stabilization assembly, each said stabilization assembly comprising at least one spring element, said spring element able to elongate and contract in reaction to an impact on said object, said stabilization assembly further comprising a first attachment means for attaching at least a first portion of said stabilization assembly to said surface, and a second attachment means for attaching a second portion of said stabilization assembly to said object,
- whereby said stabilization system restores said object substantially to said nominal position relative to said surface without additional intervention.
2. The stabilization system of claim 1 wherein the object is a standard of a net game system, and a net is disposed between a plurality of said standards and held taught with an initial net tension force.
3. The net game system of claim 2 wherein said standards are made of elastically deformable material.
4. The net game system of claim 2 wherein said standards comprise a height adjustment means for vertically adjusting the height of said net, and said initial net tension force is substantially maintained across a height adjustment range by said stabilization system.
5. The net game system of claim 4 wherein said height adjustment means comprises a height adjustment guide, said net slidably attaching to said height adjustment guide and a movable stop attached above and a movable stop attached below said net whereby a user may slide said net and said movable stops along said height adjustment guide continuously across said height adjustment range.
6. The net game system of claim 4 wherein said second attachment means fixes said stabilization assembly to said standard below a maximum height of said standard and to a non-adjustable portion of said standard.
7. The net game system of claim 4 wherein said spring element is made of bungee cord between about ¼ and about ½″ in diameter, and said net may translate from a minimum height of about 24″ to a maximum height of about 8 ft.
8. The stabilization system of claim 1 further comprising a safety means, said safety means safely dissipating energy stored in at least one said stabilization assembly, whereby said safety means prevents harmful effects to a person should said stabilization assembly inadvertently release from said surface.
9. The safety means of claim 8 further comprising:
- a rigid tube comprising a first tube end and a second tube end, said rigid tube encompassing a length portion of said stabilization assembly, said second tube end fixed substantially near said second portion of said stabilization assembly, where said stabilization assembly is allowed to translate through said rigid tube;
- and a blocking means secured to said first tube end for preventing said first attachment means from translating past said first tube end.
10. The safety means of claim 9 wherein said blocking means comprises a rigid tube opening that is smaller than said first attachment means, thereby providing mechanical interference between said first tube end and said first attachment means.
11. The safety means of claim 8 further comprising:
- a) a fabric sleeve disposed around said stabilization assembly, said fabric sleeve comprising a first sleeve end and a second sleeve end, said second sleeve end attached substantially near said second portion of said stabilization assembly;
- b) a rigid member constrained by said fabric sleeve, said rigid member running substantially the length of said fabric sleeve, and blocking means to prevent said first attachment means of said stabilization assembly from translating past said first sleeve end.
12. The safety means of claim 8 wherein a safety connecting member is disposed between said object and said first attachment means of said stabilization assembly, and a tertiary attachment means is connected along the length of said safety connecting member for securing said safety connecting member to said surface.
13. The tertiary connecting means of claim 12 being a safety stake.
14. The safety means of claim 8 wherein a bar comprises a first penetrating end pressed into said surface and a second penetrating end pressed into said surface, and at least on of said stabilization assemblies is disposed between said object and said first penetrating end and a second of said stabilization assemblies is disposed between said object and second penetrating end whereby a pullout force on said first penetrating end causes said second penetrating end to be pressed tighter into said surface.
15. The safety means of claim 8 wherein a height limiting member is disposed between a base of said object and said stabilization assembly, said height limiting member connecting substantially near said first attachment means.
16. A method of stabilizing an object in a nominal position relative to a surface comprising:
- a) providing at least one stabilization assembly, each said stabilization assembly comprising at least one spring element, said spring element able to elongate and contract in reaction to an impact on said object, said stabilization assembly further comprising a first attachment means for attaching at least a first portion of said stabilization assembly to said surface, and a second attachment means for attaching a second portion of said stabilization assembly to said object,
- whereby said stabilization system restores said object substantially to said nominal position relative to said surface without additional intervention
17. A continuously length adjustable net for attachment between a plurality of standards of a net support structure, said continuously length adjustable net comprising:
- a) a net fabric spanning at least a predetermined maximum usable length;
- b) a first net end with net attachment means for connecting to a first standard; and a second net end with said net attachment means for connecting to a second standard, whereby said net may span any of a desired length continuously up to said maximum predetermined usable length.
18. The net attachment means of claim 17 wherein said first net end is attached to said standard with hook and loop fastener and said second net end wraps around said second standard, doubles back, and connects to said net fabric with hook and loop fastener.
19. The continuously length adjustable net of claim 17 wherein the length of the net may be adjusted from about 9 ft to about 18 ft.
20. The continuously length adjustable net of claim 17 wherein a width of said net may range from about 4″ to about 24″.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 28, 2013
Publication Date: Aug 28, 2014
Inventors: Robert Tremaine Whalen (Los Altos, CA), Sean Tremaine Whalen (Los Altos, CA)
Application Number: 13/815,444
International Classification: A63B 61/02 (20060101); A63B 61/00 (20060101);
